Savchenko became interested in figure skating after seeing it on television.[6] She began skating at age five and practiced with her father on a lake.[4][6] She convinced her parents to let her skate at a rink 50 km away, although it required her arriving at a bus stop at four in the morning for a two-hour ride to the rink.[7] Savchenko turned to pairs at age 13, saying "I saw the other skaters doing it and I wanted to do it myself. I liked all the acrobatic things like lifts and twists and throws."[6]

Savchenko and her first partner, Dmitri Boyenko, were coached by Alexander Artychenko, and represented Ukraine under the auspices of the club Dynamo Kiev. The pair split after the 1998 World Junior Championships where they placed 13th.

Savchenko told a German journalist she was looking for a partner. He spoke to German coaches and suggested Robin Szolkowy, whom she recognized from a competition.[6] In May 2003, Savchenko had a successful tryout with Szolkowy in Chemnitz, Germany. Three months later, she relocated to Germany and the new team began training in earnest with former World champion Ingo Steuer as their coach. When they first teamed up, they had to adjust to the fact that they had been taught different basics.[10]

Savchenko/Szolkowy worked mostly in Chemnitz, training twice a day, six days a week.[7] Ingo Steuer served as their coach, choreographer, skate sharpener, and music cutter.[7][10][11] Savchenko designed the pair's costumes.[12] When the Chemnitz ice rink was melted – generally from the start of April to mid-May – they trained in Dresden if they needed ice time during this period.[13][14]

In their first season together, Savchenko/Szolkowy won the German National title. They made their international debut as a team at the start of the 2004–05 season. They again won the German National pair title, placed fourth at 2005 European Championships with 158.73 points and sixth at the 2005 World Championships earning 169.02 points.

Savchenko was granted German citizenship on 29 December 2005, making it possible for the pair to compete at the 2006 Winter Olympics. Just prior to the Olympics, the National Olympic Committee of Germany decided to exclude their coach, Ingo Steuer, from the Olympic team due to his collusion with the Stasi.[15] After a court battle, he was granted accreditation.[15] Savchenko/Szolkowy finished sixth with 180.15 points. They also placed sixth at 2006 Worlds some weeks later, where they earned 170.08 points overall.

The German Ministry of Interior Affairs continued to put pressure on the German Skating Federation over the Steuer affair.[15] As a result, the pair's coach was denied accreditation for the upcoming competitions but the team challenged this in court and won.[15] However, the pair's refusal to leave their coach cost Szolkowy his place in the German army, which had sponsored his skating.[15] Private sponsors and fans supported the pair.[15]

Savchenko/Szolkowy won the European Championships for the first time, becoming the first German pair skaters to win the title in twelve years; their coach, Ingo Steuer, had won with Mandy Wötzel in 1995.[12] They won the short program with 65.38 points, although Savchenko fell on the throw triple flip. In the free skate, they set a new personal best of 134.01 points while skating to the soundtrack of the film The Mission. Their combined total of 199.39 points was also a new best, and they finished 19.78 points ahead of silver medalists Maria Petrova / Alexei Tikhonov.

Savchenko/Szolkowy made their third World appearance at the 2007 World Championships. Second in the short program and third in the free skate, they won their first World medal, a bronze. Their total score was 16.11 points behind gold medalists Shen/Zhao.

In January 2008, Savchenko/Szolkowy successfully defended their European title. Finishing first in both segments with a total score of 202.39 points, they won their second European title by a 32.98-point lead over silver medalists Maria Mukhortova / Maxim Trankov.[17][18] At the 2008 World Championships, held in Gothenburg, Sweden, they placed second in the short program, 2.36 points behind Zhang/Zhang of Chin, and first in the free skate, 6.74 ahead of Jessica Dubé / Bryce Davison. Overall, Savchenko/Szolkowy finished 5.04 points ahead of silver medalists Zhang/Zhang and won their first World Championship title.

In late January 2009, they competed at the 2009 European Championships as the defending champions. After placing second in the short program, 2.98 behind Maria Mukhortova / Maxim Trankov,[19] they won the free skate with a season's best score of 132.43 points and won the competition overall with a total of 199.07 points, 16.30 points ahead of silver medalists Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov. This earned Savchenko/Szolkowy their third consecutive European title.[20]

Savchenko/Szolkowy went to the 2009 World Championships as the defending champions. Despite Savchenko fighting a flu,[21] they tallied a personal best 72.30 points in the short program to take the lead by a margin of 3.36 points over Kavaguti/Smirnov. They also won the free skate with 131.18 points. A throw triple salchow on the last beat of their music in the long program ensured victory. They finished with a combined total of 203.48 points, another personal best, and won by almost 17 points over silver medalists Zhang Dan / Zhang Hao.[22] Savchenko/Szolkowy were the first German pair since Marika Kilius / Hans-Jürgen Bäumler (1963 and 1964) to successfully defend a World Championship title.

Savchenko/Szolkowy began the 2009–2010 season at the 2009 Nebelhorn Trophy. They finished first in both segments and earned the gold medal with a total score of 185.99 points. At their first Grand Prix of the season, the 2009 Trophée Eric Bompard, the pair placed first in the short program with a new personal best score of 72.98 points, leading by 6.1 points over Maria Mukhortova / Maxim Trankov, but finished fourth in the free skate with 101.44 points. Overall, they won the bronze medal with 174.42 points, 18.51 behind gold medalists Mukhortova/Trankov. On the plane back to Germany, Steuer suggested scrapping their long program to You'll Never Walk Alone,[23] which had been recorded for them by André Rieu's orchestra in Maastricht.[24] Although they had worked on the program since May, Savchenko said it "just didn't suit us", so they decided to prepare a new one to the soundtrack of Out of Africa.[23]

At the 2009 Skate Canada, Savchenko/Szolkowy won the short program, improving their personal best to 74.16 points, and leading the rest of the field by 8.36 points. They also won the free skate with a score of 132.55 points, placing first overall with 206.71 points, 21 ahead of Mukhortova/Trankov. They set a new world record for pairs' combined total under the ISU Judging System.[25] It was also the first time a judge gave a 10.0 under the Code of Points.[2]

Their placements in their two 2009–10 Grand Prix events qualified them for the 2009–10 Grand Prix Final that was held in Tokyo, Japan, in December 2009. Savchenko/Szolkowy placed second in the short program with 73.14 points, 2.22 behind Shen Xue / Zhao Hongbo. However, they finished fourth in the free skate with 127.24 points. They won the bronze medal overall with 200.38 points, 13.87 behind gold medalists Shen/Zhao. Savchenko developed a flu during the Grand Prix Final which worsened and forced the pair to withdraw from German Nationals.[26]

At the 2010 European Championships, Savchenko/Szolkowy led in the short program with 74.12 points, by just 0.2 over Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov. They placed second in the free skate with a new personal best 137.60 points, 1.63 behind gold medalists Kavaguti/Smirnov, who consequently placed first in the free skate and overall. Overall, Savchenko and Szolkowy earned a new personal best score of 211.72 points.

At the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, Savchenko/Szolkowy earned their personal best score of 75.96 points in the short program, yet only placed second. Shen/Zhao took the top stop with a world record short program score of 76.66 points. They placed third in the free skating with 134.64 points, 7.16 behind Pang Qing / Tong Jian, who placed first in that segment. Overall they won the bronze medal with 210.60 points, 5.97 behind gold medalists and Olympic champions Shen/Zhao and 2.71 behind silver medalists Pang / Tong.

Savchenko/Szolkowy ended their season at the 2010 World Championships. They placed third in the short program with 69.52 points, which was 5.76 behind leaders Pang/Tong. In the free skate they placed second with a score of 135.22 points, 0.89 behind Pang/Tong, who also won that segment to capture the gold medal. Overall, the team totaled 204.74 points to win the silver medal. Following the Olympics, Savchenko/Szolkowy both concluded they would like to continue competing at least another season.[13]

After performing in fifteen shows, Savchenko/Szolkowy began training for the 2010–11 season in May 2010 in Chemnitz.[26][28] The pair experimented with a throw quad flip in training. Steuer said, "It did work sometimes, but it needs extremely high concentration."[29] In September 2010, Savchenko stated that they "plan to continue through 2014, but you never know if our bodies will work as we like them to work."[29]

At the European Championships, Savchenko/Szolkowy won the short program by almost three points, receiving a perfect ten for performance and execution from one of the judges.[35] In the long program, the pair received zero points for a spin after an error by Savchenko; they placed second in the free program by less than a point, finishing first overall to win their fourth European title ahead of 2010 champions Kavaguti/Smirnov.[36][37] Their training ice was scheduled to be melted in late March, after they would normally have left for the World Championships, however, the competition was postponed to late April. They were able to get their ice time extended until Easter, with the city and sport association negotiating the finances.[38]

At the 2011 World Championships, Savchenko/Szolkowy were in second place following the short program.[39] They went on to win their third World Championships with a record-breaking free skate. Their total score was also a new world record.[40] With this win, the pair capped off a season in which they won every event they entered.

Savchenko and Szolkowy perform their Pina free skate at the 2012 World Championships

Savchenko/Szolkowy took up the option of competing at three Grand Prix events during the 2011–12 season. They are entered in 2011 Skate America, 2011 NHK Trophy and 2011 Cup of Russia. In October, they confirmed Pina and Angels & Demons as their new music selections and said they were practicing a throw triple Axel,[41][14] successfully executed in international competition by only one previous pair, Americans Rena Inoue / John Baldwin at the 2006 Winter Olympics.[42] At Skate America, Savchenko/Szolkowy attempted the throw triple axel in the short program but experienced a hard fall.[43] They were given credit for completing the revolutions and finished in 5th place, 3.4 points off the lead.[44] They rebounded to place first in the free skate and won their second consecutive Skate America title and third in their career.[45] They added a reverse lasso lift to their free program but performed only a double twist because they were still working on a new entry to the triple.[46]

They attempted the throw triple axel again in the short program at 2011 NHK Trophy but Savchenko took another hard fall.[42] They finished third at the event.[47] Savchenko/Szolkowy rebounded to win the 2011 Rostelecom Cup.[48] They qualified for the 2011–12 Grand Prix Final. Although they did not attempt it in Russia, they said they had not ruled out the triple axel.[49] At the Grand Prix Final, Savchenko/Szolkowy won the gold medal with a total score of 212.26, defeating Volosozhar/Trankov by a margin of only 0.18 points.[50][51][52] Savchenko/Szolkowy missed their nationals with the German Skating Union's okay and continued to work on the throw triple axel.[53]

In October 2011, Savchenko/Szolkowy were awarded the public prize at Germany's tenth and final Unity Prize ceremony.[54] In January 2012, they were voted Saxony's Sports Team of 2011.[55]

Savchenko ruptured a muscle fiber in her left upper thigh as a result of a fall in training on 12 January 2012.[56][57][58][59] Because she was not fully fit, the pair considered withdrawing from the 2012 European Championships (pairs event 25–26 January) or reducing the level of planned difficulty but said they feared a withdrawal would result in a one-year ban from competition if they performed in 2–8 February Art on Ice shows, a significant source of income (around 80,000 euros)[60] for the pair which receives no funding from the German federation.[57][61] By the start of the competition, Savchenko was able to land jumps and throws but spins aggravated her injury, causing the pair to withdraw before the short program on 25 January.[59][62]

At the 2012 World Championships in Nice, France, Savchenko/Szolkowy were first in the short program on 28 March.[63] After falls on previous competition attempts, Savchenko landed the throw triple Axel for the first time in their career but her free foot touched the ice.[63] On 29 March, Szolkowy lost a court case seeking reinstatement to the Bundeswehr which funded his sports career until 2006 – the court stated he did not have an authorized coach.[64][65] Savchenko/Szolkowy were second in the free skate on 30 March but finished first overall. They won their fourth World title – becoming the fifth pair in the post-World War II period to do so – by a margin of 0.11 points over silver medalists Volosozhar/Trankov.[66]

Savchenko/Szolkowy began the season with gold at the 2012 Skate Canada International, although Savchenko had a flu.[67] Officials elected not to impose a deduction after Szolkowy violated the regulation against men wearing tights.[67] Steuer said they would consider making some adjustments.[67] Their colorful costumes received a mixed reaction, with one Canadian journalist describing them as "something that looked like the cat threw up", however, Szolkowy said he was pleased with the results of their collaboration with a Chemnitz design studio.[67] On 8 November 2012, it was announced that Savchenko/Szolkowy had signed a three-year agreement with their first major sponsor, ThomasLloyd, a Swiss investment banking group.[68][69] Szolkowy said that they no longer had to worry about finances.[68] The pair said they were uncertain if they would compete at their second Grand Prix assignment, the 2012 Trophée Eric Bompard, due to Savchenko's illness.[69] Savchenko's cold having developed into a severe sinus infection, the pair confirmed their withdrawal a week later.[70] Since ISU rules do not allow another GP event to be given if skaters withdraw for any reason from an assignment, this also meant they would not qualify for the Grand Prix Final in Sochi.[71] They won silver medals at both the 2013 European Championships and the 2013 World Championships.

Savchenko/Szolkowy were assigned to the 2013 Cup of China and the 2013 Rostelecom Cup as their Grand Prix events. They finished second in the short program but won the free skate to claim the Cup of China title,[72] making them only the second pair to win all six Grand Prix events. At the 2013–14 Grand Prix Final, Savchenko/Szolkowy edged out Volosozhar/Trankov for the gold medal after placing second in the short and first in the free setting a new personal best scores total of 227.03 points. They then competed at the 2014 European Championships but withdrew after the short program because of Savchenko's flu.

At the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, Savchenko/Szolkowy earned the bronze medal. They placed second in the short program and fourth in the free skate. During the free skate, Szolkowy fell in the pair's side-by-side triple jumps and Savchenko fell in the throw triple axel at the conclusion of the program and dropping to third in the overall standings behind Ksenia Stolbova / Fedor Klimov.

Savchenko decided to continue competing, a possibility she had considered since the 2013 Cup of China.[75] On March 29, 2014, it was reported that she would team up with France's Bruno Massot.[76] The two began training together in April, working to adjust to each other's different technique.[77] They made their first appearance as a pair at the 2014 All That Skate shows in South Korea.[78] Because Chemnitz melted its ice rink until nearly the end of August, they trained in Coral Springs, Florida for two months beginning in mid-July.[79][80]

Since the ISU does not allow any pairing to compete under two flags, one partner is obliged to change country and may not compete internationally until the previous country grants a release.[81][82] In July 2014, Savchenko said she preferred to continue competing for Germany while Massot preferred France.[78] On 29 September 2014, the Deutsche Eislauf-Union announced that Savchenko/Massot had decided to skate for Germany.[83][1][84]